Cedar Valley Services' vegetable cut crew supports substantial Albert Lea food producer

Cedar Valley Services in Austin, Minn. began working with Mrs. Gerry’s Kitchen during the busy summer months of 2018, providing a short-term workforce when they needed help with their vegetable line. 

We were scheduled to work in addition to their temporary employees and college students, and it was just for the summer season.  Initially we had one job coach and three clients (consumers) commute to the food service plant in Albert Lea. 

Our job coach assisted consumers to learn how to cut and clean vegetables for processing.  That first year our work crew was last on the list for hours, behind their temporary employees and college students.  Our quality and dependability was noticed, by Mrs. Gerry’s management, and secured more work hours for our consumers.

Thanks to their dedication and hard work, Cedar Valley consumers became the “regular vegetable cut crew.”  This ranking means we were designated as “essential workers” in the food industry during the current pandemic. It is not just seasonal work anymore, as we continue the work year-round, albeit during slower seasons we do not put in as many hours.  Consumers earn minimum wage on this job, and we now have nine consumers who rotate working at this enclave, six at a time with two staff.  

One of the workers, Ruth, said she likes working with vegetables a lot. Her job pays minimum wage and she uses her earnings to travel and shop. Another crewmember, Nathan, said the work is fun and easy. "I like working with food as I may want to be a chef someday." He likes working more hours when they are offered and is using his wages to pay off some bills.

The success of this work opportunity for our consumers is due to the relationship we have created with Mrs. Gerrys. From the beginning, they supported us by being flexible and accommodating with the hours of work- no nights or weekends. They allowed us to first establish good attendance and quality, and now we are working diligently to bring up production with those consumers needing the extra support.

Standards and outcomes are in place for consumers and staff to focus on, and staff are continuously modeling good work skills by prepping vegetables right alongside the consumers. Mrs. Gerry’s personnel have always made our consumers feel accepted and welcomed.  We have received many compliments on our dependability, and they enjoy the upbeat attitude our crew exhibits. Our consumers have succeeded in becoming part of the Mrs. Gerry’s team, are engaged and invested in their work, and accept and appreciate the effort each of their coworkers contribute in getting the job done as a crew.

This relationship with Mrs. Gerry’s is not something new for Cedar Valley, but is one of the more recent successes. Our oldest operating crew has been going to a Northfield business since 1996.  This large company even changed ownership during our time with them, and the new owners saw the value in keeping our relationship in place. So, Cedar Valley’s goal for the future is to keep our relationship with Mrs. Gerry’s just as strong, to hopefully expand into other departments within the company, and possibly facilitate competitive placements for those consumers who may be interested.  

 

Courtesy of Cedar Valley Services.  Photos: Mrs. Gerry's Kitchen